


When he sees me

by artsyleo



Series: Stage Lights AU [2]
Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Theatre, First Dates, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Implied Sexual Content, Light Angst, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:02:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24372484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artsyleo/pseuds/artsyleo
Summary: Ben Mitchell wasn’t nervous.Ben Mitchell didn’t get nervous, ever.But fuck, was he stressed- because Callum Highway was about to pick him up for their date. Callum Highway, perfect Callum Highway- the man that laughed at all his stupid jokes like they were the funniest thing in the world, and who brought an extra coffee with him to rehearsals in the morning, and somehow, by some insane miracle, he’d gotten a date with the man. How? That was beyond him. But the important thing was that he’d gotten the date, and he had to be perfect.
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Series: Stage Lights AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1759720
Comments: 14
Kudos: 51





	When he sees me

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer - Ben is not (yet) deaf in this au, because the boat crash didn't happen in this timeline, however I want his development in this au to match that of the show, so watch this space (I have plans)  
> also Lexi isn't Ben's daughter in this au, I think she's still gonna be in it?

Ben Mitchell wasn’t nervous.

Ben Mitchell didn’t get nervous, ever.

But fuck, was he stressed- because Callum Highway was about to pick him up for their date. Callum Highway, perfect Callum Highway- the man that laughed at all his stupid jokes like they were the funniest thing in the world, and who brought an extra coffee with him to rehearsals in the morning, and somehow, by some insane miracle, he’d gotten a date with the man. How? That was beyond him. But the important thing was that he’d gotten the date, and he had to be perfect. He’d showered, brushed his hair, cleaned his face- he’d even roped Lola into helping him pick out his best shirt.

All of that he could accept. But he would never admit that he was nervous.

“Ben, you’ve been pacing the living room for the last half an hour. Sit down before you hurt yourself,” Lola said, an amused lilt to her voice.

“If you’re laughing at me, you can pay the whole rent next month,” Ben responded, resuming his pacing.

“What’s so great about this guy, anyway? The first week all you did was complain about him! Said he was ‘too perfect’ or some bullshit,” she laughed.

“That’s the problem, Lo! He’s too perfect! And I’m going to screw it up, and then he’s going to hate me!” Ben cried, gesturing wildly, the same way he always had when he was nervous.

“Oh my god, Ben Mitchell is nervous!” Lola laughed, clapping her hands together like an excited seal. “You’re actually nervous!”

“I am not! I don’t get nervous,” Ben replied turning away so that Lola couldn’t spot the blush climbing up his cheeks.

“Bullshit!”

They were both interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

“It’s him, fucking hell.”

“Answer the door then, you prat!” Lola laughed with glee, delighted at seeing her usually cool-headed roommate so caught up over a date. She couldn’t remember him being this nervous about a guy since Paul, which was somewhat nice- he was letting himself move on. Lola just hoped that it went well, both for her sake and Ben’s- she’d never hear the end of it if it didn’t.

-

It took until Callum had knocked on Ben’s front door to come to the conclusion that he was going to make an utter fool of himself. He hadn’t been on a proper dinner date for months, and his only dates with Chris were surrounded by other soldiers, in the midst of war. As much as standing outside Ben’s house now felt like the end of the world, he couldn’t exactly compare a restaurant to a warzone. So, yeah, it was safe to say he was nervous. He had no clue how to act on a date, either- what questions to ask, whether you should talk about yourself, or just listen to the other person, whether it was safe for him to admit the fact that he hadn’t stopped thinking about the feeling of Ben’s lips pressed against his since that night, their bodies close, a firm hand on the back of his head-

“Hey!” Ben’s overly confident voice interrupted his thoughts, and Callum’s breath caught in his throat. Ben was dressed up, and, fuck, he looked incredible- he wore a dark red button down, two buttons undone at the top which just exposed the corners of his collarbones, with a sleek black leather jacket pulled around his shoulders. His black jeans were just the right side of tight- Callum made sure to tear his eyes away as soon as he realised that he was staring. Thankfully, Ben had his usual cocky grin on his face, one eyebrow raised.

“H-hey,” Callum said. “You look- um, great, Ben.”

“You don’t scrub up half bad yourself, Halfway,” Ben replied, grinning as he openly checked Callum out. He tried not to shift too much under Ben’s careful gaze, but his eyes just looked all the more hungry when they met Callum’s again.

Callum let out a nervous laugh. “Ready to go?”

“Lead the way, Mr Highway.”

-

“So, what did Mr Highway do before he became actor extraordinaire, then?”

Callum took a breath, letting the blush wash over his cheeks at the small compliment- he’d stopped trying to supress it about an hour ago. Everything had been going so much better than expected. It turned out when you got Ben a little wine drunk and fed him some good food, he could be a proper charmer and his warm cheeks were suffering for it- he’d had an almost constant blush across them since the start of the night. Ben had put him so at ease, evidently sensing his anxious nature and reaching a hand across the table, reassuring him that he had nothing to worry about. This topic though- it never failed to get his heart racing a little uncomfortably.

“I, uh- I was in the army for a few years, straight out of school,” Callum replied, fiddling with his fork.

“Ex-military man, hey? Well, I do love a man in uniform,” Ben laughed, and it felt like all of the apprehension just drained out of Callum. Somehow, Ben knew just what to say to make him feel normal again, like the memories of being in the army had finally been put at bay for a while with just a few sarcastic words.

(Callum wasn’t entirely sure whether that was completely a joke, though- he made a mental note to broach the subject with Ben, perhaps when they weren’t in the middle of a crowded restaurant, or when they had a private room that they could escape to.)

So, Callum let out a genuine laugh at that, bright and calm, and it brought this beautiful smile to Ben’s face, which just made him blush even more.

“Yeah, was sent home on medical grounds about 8 months ago,” Callum said. The way that Ben’s face dropped when the words passed into the air made him regret every choice he’d ever made. Fuck, he knew he’d screw this up.

“I’m sorry, that’s- awful,” Ben said, a genuine sympathetic smile on his face. “But I’m glad you made it back in one piece.”

“Mostly,” Callum said, before he could stop himself. Ben raised an eyebrow at that, concern flashing across his face, and a part of Callum loved that Ben actually cared about him.

“Sorry, I, uh- I guess this is as good a time as any to tell you,” Callum said, his hands starting to shake a little. Ben didn’t say anything, though, just leaving a hand out on the table for Callum to take- he does, and Ben’s hands were surprisingly warm in his own. “I’m fine, physically. I got a shrapnel injury, but it’s all healed by now, but- I got diagnosed with PTSD when I came back.”

There it was- Callum felt like he’d thrown himself off a cliff, completely at Ben’s mercy. Ben could have turned away right then, decided that Callum was too complicated, and Callum wouldn’t even have blamed him. But, to his credit, Ben hardly even hesitated.

“Okay,” he said, offering Callum a small smile and squeezing his hand. “If there’s anything I can do to help, Callum, just let me know.”

The sincerity in Ben’s words made fondness rear in Callum’s chest. He was so used to feeling ashamed about his PTSD, like it somehow made him weak (that’s certainly what his father would have said, and his voice still drums around in Callum’s head sometimes) but hearing Ben be so- normal about it, and so considerate, Callum couldn’t ask for more.

“Thank you,” Callum said, squeezing Ben’s hand in response.

“I’m partially deaf,” Ben said, looking down at his plate a little. “I had meningitis when I was a kid, and I lost the hearing in my left ear. I have a hearing aid, one of them invisible ones, but it’s a pain from time to time.”

“Okay,” Callum responded, clutching onto Ben’s hand, trying his best to catch his eye again. “I don’t care, you know. It’s a part of you, and I’m quite liking you so far.”

Ben laughed at that, a proper smile flooding onto his face again, looking back up at Callum.

“My point is, we’ve both got crosses to bear, Callum. There’s nothing wrong with that,” Ben replied. “And, hey, now that we’ve got the deep stuff out on the first date, I can properly start to work on getting you back into bed, yeah?”

That brought a surprised laugh out of Callum, looking around on instinct to make sure that no one’s listening. It’s something that he’d picked up from his army days, being so painfully in the closet and so conscious of anyone overhearing him and Chris. It came naturally now, but when his eyes connected with Ben’s again, the other man had this smile on his face that told him he had nothing to be worried about.

“Oh yeah? And how you proposing to go about that, then?” Callum quipped back, proud of himself for not stuttering over his words, for once in his life. Ben looked surprised at that, but pleasantly, when he smiled his mischievous smile in response.

“Well, you’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?”

-

Callum couldn’t stop marvelling at the feeling of Ben’s hand clutched in his. He knew that his own hands were hard and calloused, after his years in the army, and they were always warm. Ben’s though- they were soft and cool, smaller than Callum’s but strong and firm in his own. Holding hands with him then- it was something he never thought he’d had. Once upon a time, he’d thought the only hands he would get to hold were ones of people he could only pretend to love. Even with Chris, he’d thought that he would forever have to live in shame and fear, not knowing who was looking or what they’d say. Then, though, walking down moonlit streets back home, Ben’s hand firmly held in his own- he finally felt free.

“So, uh, did I pass the first date test, then?” Callum asked, pulling himself out of his thoughts. Ben laughed a little, and fuck, wasn’t that a great sound.

“I think you most certainly did, Mr Highway,” he replied, a beautiful smile across his face.

“So does that mean you can stop calling me Mr Highway, then?” Callum replied.

“What would you prefer, then?” Ben smirked. “Sir?”

“Stop it, you,” Callum laughed. “Just Callum is fine, thank you.”

“Well then, Just Callum, you staying the night?” Ben said, standing just before his door. “My roommate’s in, so there’ll be no funny business.”

Callum smiled; the thought of just sleeping with Ben’ spending the night with him-

“Yeah, yeah I’d like that,” he replied. Ben nodded and pulled out a key before turning to the door.

“Lola?” Ben called out once Callum had closed the door behind him.

“Ben?” a woman’s voice, presumably Lola, called out from further into the house. “You back? Did the nerves pay off? Did you kiss him, or were you too-“

Lola walked around the corner, a glass of wine in her hand, and startled at seeing Callum, who had a grin on his face, holding in laughter. Ben had a bright blush across his cheeks and was glaring at Lola.

“Yeah, thanks for that, Lola. This is Callum,” Ben said, gesturing to him. Callum stepped forward holding a hand out to Lola, who took it with a wide smile.

“Good to meet you, Callum. I can see what he was so nervous about,” Lola said.

“And with that, we’ll be going to bed,” Ben said, blush not fading.

“Oh, keep it down, will you? Don’t want to be hearing you going at it all night.”

“You’re disgusting, Lola. Unlike you, I would never do that while my roommate was at home,” Ben replied, a petulant smirk on his face.

“Alright, alright, no need for that,” Lola said, before turning back into another room.

“Come on then, you,” Ben smiled, grabbing Callum’s hand again. “To bed.”

-

If Callum thought walking down the street, hand in hand with Ben had felt good, having him in his arms was something else. Ben’s back was pressed into his chest, his legs tangled with Callum’s own. Callum’s hand was thrown over Ben’s chest, feeling the beating of his heart against his own palm, and Callum couldn’t stop smiling. He’d been so nervous before about the date, but if he had to go through those nerves a thousand times just to end the night wrapped up with Ben, he’d do it in a heartbeat.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry this took so long but omg do I love this au- thank you so much to all the wonderful people who commented on Someone To You requesting a continuation, it means a lot that people enjoy it :)  
> if you have any requests for this au or fics in general, leave them on my tumblr artsy-highway! stay safe and hope you enjoyed x  
> Leo <3


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